Options Radar: InterDigital, Inc., Novavax, Inc., MannKind Corporation

Reviewing notable options activity on InterDigital, Inc., Novavax, Inc., and MannKind Corporation

Digital Content Group

Oct 28, 2014 at 1:40 PM

Three stocks seeing notable options activity today are wireless technology firm InterDigital, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDCC), as well as drugmakers Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) and MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD). Here's a look at how today's options traders have been placing their bets on these three names.

InterDigital, Inc. (NASDAQ:IDCC) has tacked on 3.6% to trade at $46.07, after winning a patent dispute with ZTE. Meanwhile, options are flying off the shelves at eight times the typical intraday clip. Most active is IDCC's November 50 call, as short-term traders gamble on the shares to topple the round-number half-century mark by the close on Friday, Nov. 21, when front-month options expire. Looking ahead, IDCC will issue quarterly earnings results bright and early on Thursday.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ:NVAX) has plunged 5% to hover near $5.51, just a day after rallying 13% on news that the company will launch early stage trials for an Ebola vaccine in December. Meanwhile, both calls and puts are changing hands at faster than double the expected intraday pace. One of the most active strikes is the December 7 call, as option bulls wager on NVAX to topple the lucky-number level by back-month options expiration -- something it hasn't done since September 2009. Of course, with 15.4% of NVAX's float sold short, it's also possible the long calls are intended to serve as short-term upside insurance.

MannKind Corporation (NASDAQ:MNKD) is up 4.4% to trade at $6.03, ahead of next Monday afternoon's earnings report. In today's trading, options are being exchanged at double the usual intraday rate, and short-term strikes are in vogue, per the stock's 30-day at-the-money implied volatility, which has spiked 12.5% to 69.8%. Digging deeper, short-term skeptics are selling to open the weekly 11/14 6.50-strike call, anticipating a technical ceiling for the shares over the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile, bullish bettors are rolling the dice on additional gains for MNKD, by buying to open the weekly 11/7 6-strike call.

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